TT 100 Private 4 PDF.Qxd

Private Carriers A Word From the Publisher hen TRANSPORT TOPICS than 1,500 tractors. published the first Top C&S Wholesale Grocers, Keene, 100 list of the largest N.H., has fueled its growth by tak- private carriers in North ing over distribution operations America in 2002, we from smaller retail grocery fleets. weren’tW sure what to expect. C&S operates more than 50 distri- The world of private carriage was bution facilities in 14 states and something like a parallel universe for ranks No. 19 with 958 tractors. for-hire freight carriers. Though What’s next? We can’t predict the shipper-owned trucks carried fully future, but it is our hope that by half of all truck freight tonnage, the closely tracking the activities of the business of private and for-hire car- largest private carriers, at least we riage rarely crossed paths. can provide clues about the direc- Now, after several years of publish- tion in which both private and for- ing the TRANSPORT TOPICS Private hire carriers are headed. 100, it is apparent that the two worlds Howard S. Abramson In addition to the TT 100 Private have begun to intersect in many signif- Carriers and the TT 100 For-Hire icant ways. Carriers lists, we publish the TRANSPORT TOPICS Private carriers routinely offer excess freight- Logistics 50, a listing of the largest third-party logis- hauling capacity to other shippers, competing tics companies in North America. directly with for-hire carriers for backhauls. And And earlier this year, TRANSPORT TOPICS’ affiliate, many for-hire carriers have created dedicated con- LIGHT & MEDIUM TRUCK magazine, published the tract carriage units to provide dedicated capacity to Top 50 Commercial Truck Fleets and the Top 50 shippers, replacing some private truck fleets. Utility and Telecom Fleets. Now, with capacity tight and freight rates rising, Our goal with each of these lists is to provide not shippers are beginning to expand the size of their just names and numbers, but insight. truck fleets once again and are looking for new ways to generate revenue by providing transportation and distribution services to the market. The move in 2005 by grocery retailer and wholesale distributor Supervalu Inc. to purchase Total Logistic Control, a major provider of refrigerated warehous- CONTENTS ing and logistics services, is an example of how the lines between private and for-hire carriers are being blurred. 4 TRANSPORT TOPICS Private 100 Wal-Mart Stores, the world’s largest retailer, was The 2006 edition of the TRANSPORT TOPICS ranked No. 1 on the first TT 100 Private Carriers list Private 100 list of the largest private carri- in 2002 with a fleet of more than 7,000 tractors. It ers features several significant additions, has since been displaced by food-service distributor with the inclusion of beverage fleets, a Sysco Corp., which topped the 2006 list with waste hauler and fleets that specialize in 7,455 tractors. servicing the booming oil and gas sector. Well over half of the companies on the TT 100 Private Carriers list are involved in the distribution of food and retail merchandise. But the list also features Acknowledgements and Sources a cross-section of companies from the heart of American industry — paper and wood products, The 2006 TRANSPORT TOPICS Private 100 is a steel distributors and petrochemical suppliers, along special project of Transport Topics Publishing with companies that provide more specialized servic- Group. It features a list of the largest shipper- es, such as the delivery of medical supplies and phar- owned fleets in the United States and Canada, maceuticals (Cardinal Health Corp.) and caskets based on the number of heavy-duty tractors they (Batesville Casket Co.). operate. Data were developed from a number of On the list, we also can see the growth of distribu- sources, including interviews with fleet managers tion specialists such as Reyes Holdings. The and information in fleet directories published by Chicago-based company parlayed its ownership of American Trucking Associations and Transpor- the Martin-Brower Co., a major distributor to tation Technical Services Inc. McDonald’s restaurants, and a collection of regional Senior Features Writer Daniel P. Bearth was beer distributors into a $7.5 billion enterprise that the project coordinator, with assistance from includes grocery supplier Reinhart Foodservice and research intern Reggie Sarpong. Design is by MBX Logistics, a consulting unit that provides ware- Patrick Donlon, TTPG assistant director of art and housing and distribution, transportation manage- production. ment and freight payment services. Reyes ranks No. 8 on the 2006 TT 100 Private Carriers with more This Transport Topics 100 PDF is sponsored by Polk Commercial Vehicle Solutions and Innovative Computer Corporation. Page 3 Private Carriers 16 Safeway Inc. 45 Vistar Corp. 74 Wakefern Food Corp. 17 Key Energy Services 46 Dot Foods 75 Weyerhaeuser Co. 18 Dean Foods 47 Gilster-Mary Lee Corp. 76 Stock Building Supply/Ferguson Enterprises 19 C&S Wholesale Grocers 48 Advanced Drainage Systems 77 Ace Hardware Corp. 20 Gordon Food Service 49 Cardinal Health 78 Unified Western Grocers 21 Schlumberger Ltd. 50 Air Liquide America 79 Army & Air Force Exchange Service 22 Airgas Inc. 51 Flying J Inc. 80 Genuine Parts Co. 23 Milk Transport Services 52 Publix Super Markets 81 McKee Foods Corp. 24 Sara Lee Corp. 53 Leggett & Platt Inc. 82 Huttig Building Products 25 Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated 54 Walgreen Co. 83 Patterson-UTI Energy Inc. 26 Basic Energy Services 55 Austin Powder Co. 84 True Value Co. 27 BlueLinx Holdings 56 Cemex Inc. 85 United Natural Foods 28 Performance Food Group 57 Ashland Inc. 86 Norcal Waste Systems Inc. 29 International Paper Co. 58 Gold Kist 87 Mobile Mini Inc. 1 Sysco Corp. 30 Praxair Inc. 59 Clean Harbors Inc. 88 Core-Mark International 2 Wal-Mart Stores 31 Mohawk Industries 60 Nestlé Transportation 89 Pacific Coast Building Products 3 Ahold USA/USFoodservice 32 Darling International 61 Rinker Materials Corp. 90 Bridgestone-Firestone North American Tire 4 Pepsi Bottling Group 33 Prairie Farms 62 Archer Daniels Midland 91 Sanderson Farms 5 Tyson Foods 34 The BOC Group 63 Foster Farms 92 Sherwin-Williams Co. 6 McLane Co. 35 Smithfield Foods 64 Exxon Mobil Corp. 93 Owens & Minor Inc. 7 Halliburton Co. 36 Delhaize America 65 Anheuser-Busch Cos. 94 Reddy Ice 8 Reyes Holdings LLC 37 Kellogg Snacks Division 66 Plains All American Pipeline L.P. 95 Carpenter Co. 9 Kroger Co. 38 H.E. Butt Grocery Co. 67 Ashley Furniture Industries 96 Linde Gas LLC 10 Supervalu Inc. 39 Land O’Lakes Inc. 68 J.R Simplot Co. 97 Earle M. Jorgensen Co. 11 BJ Services Co. 40 Unisource Worldwide 69 Kraft Foods 98 Toys “R” Us Inc. 12 Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. 41 CHS Inc. 70 CVS Corp. 99 AmeriGas Propane 13 PepsiCo Inc. 42 Ben E. Keith Co. 71 Sentinel Transportation LLC 100 Trinity Industries 14 Interstate Bakeries Corp. 43 Air Products and Chemicals 72 Bunzl USA Inc. 15 Shaw Industries 44 Univar USA 73 Valley Proteins trailer units are used to transport compacted waste to distant landfills. The only waste hauler Beverage Fleets, Waste Hauler to make the TT Private 100 this year is California-based Norcal Waste Systems, No. 86, Among Top 100’s Newcomers with 321 tractors. Also joining the TT Private 100 for the first By Daniel P. Bearth Making its first appearance — at No. 4 — is time are oilfield service specialists Key Energy Senior Features Writer Pepsi Bottling Group. The Indianapolis-based Services and Basic Energy Services, ranked No. company operates New Bern Transport as a for- 17 and No. 26, respectively. hire and private carrier and owns more than Cemex Inc., the largest cement producer in he 2006 edition of the TRANSPORT 5,600 tractors. North America, is ranked No. 56, and Pacific TOPICS Top 100 list of the largest private In prior years, beverage fleets, along with most Coast Building Products ranks No. 89. T carriers features several significant addi- vocational, utility, government and farm and Other newcomers include carpet and flooring tions with the inclusion of beverage fleets, a home fuel delivery fleets, were excluded from manufacturer Mohawk Industries, No. 31; waste hauler and fleets that specialize in servic- consideration in compiling the list of top private Mobile Mini, a manufacturer of storage contain- ing the booming oil and gas sector. carriers because of their specialized nature. For ers and portable offices, No. 87; Core-Mark Food processing and grocery distribution several years, New Bern Transport was included International, a distributor of nongrocery items firms continue to dominate the list, however, on the TRANSPORT TOPICS 100 list of largest for- to convenience stores, No. 88; Valley Proteins, a accounting for 45 of the top 100 private carriers hire carriers, attesting to the dual nature of its processor of used cooking oil and animal by- in 2006 and about 60% of the total number of service. products, No. 73; and food distributors Sara Lee tractors owned and operated by the top 100 The decision to include beverage fleets in the Corp., No. 24; Wakefern Food Corp., No. 74; fleets. Petroleum, chemical and gas companies listing reflects the fact that beverages are a and United Natural Foods, No. 85. numbered 19 — two more than a year ago. major source of freight for both private and for- Information on the size of private carriers, for Wholesale and retail distribution also had 19 hire carriers. Plus, a number of companies pre- the most part, was provided directly by compa- companies on the list, followed by manufactur- viously listed, such as Reyes Holdings and Ben ny management, supplemented by data from ing with 12, building materials and metal prod- E.

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